August 02, (THEWILL) — A business mogul and 2023 governorship candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in Ebonyi State, Chief Ifeanyi Chukwuma Odii, has empowered 53 individuals with a total sum of over N159 million as part of a comprehensive skills acquisition and economic empowerment programme.
Each beneficiary received N3 million as startup capital and was enrolled on a fully-funded vocational training program at the Federal University of Agriculture, Umudike.
The package also covered full tuition, accommodation, stipends, logistics, and other welfare needs for the entire training period.
The initiative, which marked the commencement of Batch 1 of the scheme, is being implemented under the Ebele and Anyichuks Foundation, with Batch 2 scheduled to be announced before the end of 2025.
Disclosing this in a statement, Odii said the programme was to create sustainable livelihoods and lift families out of poverty through practical skill acquisition and business support.
“Today marks another significant milestone. These individuals are about to acquire vocational skills that will spark a new dawn of prosperity for their families and communities”, he said.
Over the years, his foundation has built hundreds of houses for the poor; constructed schools and rural roads in various communities; awarded full scholarships to over 1,000 indigent students within and outside Nigeria; provided COVID-19 palliatives to more than 400,000 families across nine states during the pandemic; and supported thousands with startup capital and business mentorship.
He said the empowerment program was part of his long-standing vision of building a more inclusive and economically stable society.
“We started this journey with a deep love for humanity, and by God’s grace, we will continue to the end until His will says otherwise”, Odii said.
He added that more beneficiaries will be captured in subsequent batches, and urged other well-meaning Nigerians to support humanitarian efforts in their communities.
He announced that the Isuachara Agriculture and Skill Acquisition empowerment initiative, 2025 and sundry empowerment programmes are still on the way for this year.
The initiative has continued to draw commendations, with stakeholders describing it as one of the most impactful private empowerment schemes in the country.
Sunday Ogbu is a professional journalist with eight - twelve years experience that had worked with various print and online media. Sunday specializes in news reporting with the aim of educating his readers on current social, political and economic occurences within his area of coverage. Sunday is a strong force to work with in the media industry and uses his positive attitude and tireless energy to encourage others to work hard and succeed. Sunday is inspired daily by his wife and their four children. In his free time, Sunday likes sight-seeing, reading and discussing issues of societal interest.
